Find Your Way By Moonlight
by whitetiger2194
Summary: When a child has been betrayed by the people who are supposed to protect them, when the last light of hope fades, that is when the guardians come. They take vengeance for those who cannot, and they protect the children of the world, no matter the cost. But when they face their worst enemy yet, can they convince a new member that it is worth the price? Serial Killer! Guardians AU
1. Chapter 1: To be a guardian

_So I was reading Asidian's story "Sacrifice" (wonderful story, I highly recommend it) and a plot bunny hit me. Basically, this is a AU of the movie with all of the guardians as serial killers of people who commit crimes against children. So they only kill pedophiles, child murders, and those that abuse children. This story will have some gory and violent parts, and of course mentions of death. I own nothing you recognize here, so don't bother to sue me._

* * *

At least he had gotten his sister out; that was the thought that kept Jack going through everything. When the man was beating him, screaming expletives at him, he repeated the thought to himself like a mantra. When he was forced to reset his own bones after a horrible "session", when he got infected and had a fever for several weeks, when he had to heal his own hurts because he had long learned that no help would ever find him, he thought of his sister's smile. And when the man finally tired of him, and left him for dead on a frozen lake, the last thing he heard was his sister's voice calling out his name.

* * *

A large Russian man in a red suit walked through an empty ally, whistling softly. He did not look around at the dark, dank ally, but instead moved through as if he had been here many times before, and knocked firmly on an old door to an abandoned building. He knocked firmly four times, and then did a complicated sires of soft and hard knocks, at the very end slamming his open palm against the door. There was a momentary pause, and then the door swung open. The small dark figure inside nodded to the Russian, then stepped aside, allowing him into the building. He entered, pausing as the door was locked behind him, waiting for his eyes to adjust to the dim surroundings.

When his eyes had adjusted, he walked through the empty hallway to a room that had obviously been abandoned years ago. The windows were boarded up, and the walls held nothing but graffiti. It was completely bare except for a table placed in the middle of the space, which the man and his companion made their way to. Around it were gathered a small girl who moved as if she were flying, dancing from place to place. Next to her sat a tall, lean Aussie, slowly polishing a small blade.

Both looked up as the two newcomers took their place on the other side of the table. The Russian looked down at the contents of the table before speaking, and he grinned viciously at what he saw. There, bound to the table by his arms and legs, was a blindfolded man. The man was completely still, and the slowly bleeding wound on his head indicated that he had been knocked unconscious. The Russian looked back at his companions.

The Aussie spoke first, "were you followed, mate?"

The Russian laughed, his whole body shacking with the force, "Of course not, my friend! I am too good for that! I lost my tail hours ago."

The other growled, baring his teeth, "You have to be more careful, mate. One day that over confidence will get us caught, North! Now, are you absolutely sure you weren't…"

His rant was interrupted by the girl, who had been watching their prisoner during her partner's discussion. "Hush," she said, drawing their attention, "our guest is about to wake up." Sure enough, when they looked down, it was to find the man strapped to the table moving slightly, groaning as he fought his way out of unconsciousness.

The Russian- or as his companions knew him, North- grinned viciously. "Well," he said, looking at the others who wore matching expressions, "We should not keep our guest waiting, no?"

There was no answer except for the screams that rang out long into the night. But that was alright. After all, that was what the guardians did.

* * *

_I plan to update this story every other day, just like my other ongoing story. I will update them on different days, however, so I should have something new to read every day. Please review and tell me what you think!  
_


	2. Chapter 2: A New Member

_I feel that I have to warn you, I know absolutely nothing about crime, or anything that is mentioned in this. All I know is CSI plot devices, which aren't very realistic, so I ask are understanding if I make a mistake. This is going to be slightly similar to the Batman story, in that all of this happens in one city where every evil person in the world seems to congregate, and where normal society is very close to breaking down. Most of this chapter is just giving background on the characters, so it's super long. I hope you like it. Please enjoy and Review!  
_

* * *

Days later, North walked down a different dimly lit corridor, whistling to himself cheerfully. This had been an excellent week for the Guardians, and he was feeling very proud of himself. He and the others had quickly finished up with the child trafficker and gone their separate ways, taking the normal week long break after a kill to make sure none of them had been spotted and were being tracked. Now it was time for them to meet up once more, and see if their benefactor had a new job for them.

He opened the door at the end of the hallway, entering a meeting room that would not have look out of place in a normal multimillion dollar business. No one would think, looking around at the tastefully decorated room, that this was a place that criminals frequented. That was why the Guardians benefactor liked it so much, because it did not fit the discussions that went on within it.

North looked around the room, finding he was again the last to arrive. He took a moment to stand in the doorway and examine his compatriots. Sandy, as always, was settled silently to one side, tapping at the keys of the laptop in front of him. Sandy had been one of North's first success stories, though that was a relative word in their line of work. No one knew if Sandy had been rendered mute because of the damage that had been done to him, or if he was so scarred by the experience he simply refused to talk. Perhaps it was neither, but either way, in North's long partnership with the man he had not once heard him utter a word.

North remember breaking down the door, after killing the man who licked to buy child slaves to use as he pleased, to find the completely silent Sandy standing there staring at him. The boy had refused to leave North, running away from any foster family he found for the boy. Eventually North gave up and began to teach him his trade, learning to his surprise that the boy had an incredible brain and clever fingers. He quickly learned how to steal and how to use computers to get information that was needed.

When he had learned all he could from North, he had set out on his own to learn more, but he always responded when North needed help, and when he decided to form the Guardians Sandy was one of the founding members. In the time in between, Sandy had become the best thief in the business, whether he was stealing physical treasures or moving past an impenetrable firewall. When the small man saw North standing in the doorway he gave him a friendly nod, then turned back to the computer in front of him.

Aster was leaning back in his chair, polishing a throwing dagger in his hand as he kept his eyes locked on the only entrance to the room, which was right across the from him. He was the last surviving member of a crime family from Australia, and was not known for his trusting nature. After watching his entire family murdered right in front of his eyes, he had fled his homeland, not stopping until North had found him in Mexico, following rumors of an amazing con artist. Aster could make any one buy anything, and he was a master at tricking people into giving him more information than they knew. He was one of those people that even the most jaded man immediately trusted, and Aster was not above using that to his advantage.

Tooth was off to the side in a swivel chair, twirling it around as she rapidly talked into a cell phone. She was another of North's early rescues, and although she had survived her experience it had scarred her for life. She had also refused to leave her rescuer, not that with her love of torture she could have ever reentered normal society. She had earned her name by her favorite form of torture, pulling out her victim's teeth. She would keep just one tooth from each victim as a souvenir, leaving the rest as a sign that the Guardians had come to make children safe. It had become their calling card, letting everyone know just who had done the killing.

There was also another person in the room, settled at the head of the table. This was their benefactor, the man who made all the Guardians did possible by providing them with funds needed for equipment and places to hide if they were ever discovered, not that they ever were. No one knew his true name, or where he got his money, but North, his oldest friend, who refused to mention anything about their time together before they formed the Guardians. All the others knew was that North always affectionately called him Manny, and had taken to calling him that themselves.

"Ah, North, thank you for coming." Manny said, gesturing to a nearby chair, "Come in and sit down. Tell me how the last mission went," So North went in, and the Guardians talked for several minutes, going over all that had happened, from what went right to what could be a problem to where they could approve. As normal Manny stayed silent as they talked, nodding absently to show he was listening.

When at last the last voice had died down, he leaned forward once more. "I think that you have become too complacent," he said, getting straight to the point. He held up a hand, forestalling Aster's objection, "Yes you have done well together for years. But our enemies have grown stronger, smarter. They will stop at nothing to have us stopped, and we must prevent that at all costs. I am calling in a new member to join the Guardians."

"We don't need some new member messing us up," Aster cried, jumping away from the table to pace the room, "We're doing just fine as we are now, mate."

Moony glared, "No Aster, that's exactly what you need. Now sit down." When Aster reluctantly moved back to his chair, Moony nodded his head, and pulled out a small folder, "He goes by Frost, though you might know him better by his street name, Ghost."

Tooth sucked in a sharp breath. Most thought Ghost was an urban legend, something told to small-time criminals to scare them. Or at least that's what everyone said until a body showed up with his signature on it. Ghost was known as the best assassin in the entire city, and most said the entire world. No one knew what he looked like, because no one ever saw him unless he wanted to be seen. He killed with completely silence; in fact most didn't realize that he had struck until the target collapsed, dead before he hit the ground.

Legend said that he struck with small needles that felt like being struck with a shard of ice, and it was so small that even after someone died, few of the needles were ever found. He always left a handcrafted snowflake either on the body of his victim or in their home, each one completely different than the others. No one knew when Ghost would strike, and it was said that once you had caught his eye there was no way to escape him. Criminals had killed themselves before, terrified that they had caught Ghost's attention and were about to die; others confessed and turned themselves over to police, not that it did any good. They were usually found dead in their cells the next day, the signature snowflake around their neck.

"He can't possibly be as good as the legends say," Aster snorted, grabbing the folder and flipping it open. On top of the papers within the folder was a picture, and North sucked in a sharp breath as he looked at it.

He looked sharply at Manny, who was avoiding his eyes. North scowled. "If you would excuse us for a moment," he said, his voice making it clear that it not a request. He stood up, not taking his eyes off Manny for a second, "Me and Manny need to discuss a few things."

The others watched as the two walked out of the room, closing the door behind them. they stayed there for a moment in shock, the Tooth shrugged and moved towards the door, feeling the others follow behind her. They all pressed their ears against the door, trying to hear what the two leaders were discussing.

North's voice came through first. "You said he was safe, that you had made sure of it."

Then Manny's, his voice sharp and angry, "I tried, North! But he's just as stubborn as you are! He just kept running away, and he learned so much on his own, enough to make himself succeed in this world. All I could do was keep an eye on him, make sure he didn't get himself killed. Besides, you have to admit the boy has done good work on his own, imagine what he could do with a team!"

After a moment of silence, North's voice came again, softer. "You're sure he doesn't remember anything?"

"Yes, I'm sure," Manny said, and they could hear the sound of clothing rustling as if one of them was shifting. "I don't know why you are fighting me on this. You know as well as I do that he would be a great Guardian."

"Yes," North agreed, sounding old and tired. "That's what I'm afraid of."

* * *

_Please tell me what you think! Here is a review replies:  
_

_PenguinBandit523: I don't want to give to much away, but why does it have to be one or the other?  
_


	3. Chapter 3: A little bit of Frost

_I am so sorry you guys! Life got so complicated that I haven't had the change to work on any of my stories in months. Thankfully things are calming down now, so hopefully I will be able to update all of my stories soon, but I can't promise anything. Please enjoy this small chapter, hopefully I will have the next part out soon.  
_

* * *

A young boy laughed as he played in a school yard with his friends, a ball bouncing on the ground in front of him. He wore a bright blue and yellow hat, and his smile seemed to light up his entire face. His friends all laughed as he jumped up excitedly as he made a score, their faces as bright and happy as his.

Unbeknownst to the boy, he was being watched. Far above his head, there was another young man sitting on a rooftop, looking down at the happy children. This boy was very pale, his bright blue eyes standing out starkly from his skin. His features were sharp, and his eyebrows were a dark brown. His snow white hair was covered by the hood of his ragged blue hoody. Jack Frost, for that was who the figure was, crouched next to a chimney, watching with a soft smile as the children played.

The school bell rang, and all of the children looked up, and then slowly made their way into the building. The boy Jack had been watching lingered a moment longer than his friends, looking around confusedly as if he could sense he was being watched. Jack ducked down farther, making sure he wasn't visible to the confused child. The boy looked around for a few more minutes, then shrugged and went inside the building. Jack sighed, and making sure no one had seen him, made his way to a nearby pipe that he shimmed his way down on. He touched down in a dark alley, and he cautiously made his way into a brightly lit street. None of the people walking hurriedly passed seemed to notice him, so he put his hands in his pockets and walked.

As he effortlessly blended in with the crowd, he wondered with a smirk how the people around him would react if they knew they were standing side by side with an unrepentant murderer. He chuckled darkly at the thought, but kept walking, making his way to the local park. When he at last reached his destination, the lake secluded in one corner of the small park on the edge of the city, he scaled up into one of the evergreens, its green needles hiding from view his small stash of supplies. There was a small back pack filled with enough food to last him a few weeks, a blanket, and a dark change of clothes. He reached in and carefully removed all of his things. When the last item had been taken out, he lifted up the backpacks hard false bottom. Inside was a locked chest, which could only be opened by a key around Jack's neck that was shaped like a shepard's staff. If anything else was used, the explosives he had rigged up in the box would explode, destroying all evidence of his doings.

He carefully opened the box, and looked upon his most prized possessions, the tools of his chosen trade. A small packet filled with his small, silvery needles was on top, the soft leather holding them in place. Below that was a packet of herbs he had gathered from the surrounding forest, and a few odds and ends he "found" around town, as well as the pedestal and mortar that he used to crush the ingredients together to create the poison he coated his deadly needles in.

Lower down were the tools he used to create his snowflakes. He never made two exactly alike, and he usually used different materials to create them. Sometimes he got scraps of metal together, and used a local store to weld them together, and sometimes he got thread or cloth and made the snowflake from that. Once when he was in a rush, he had made a snowflake out of paper, and left it to slowly be dyed red by his victims blood. But his favorite method was to craft it out of wood. He would pick up a small piece of discarded wood from the lumber yard, or took a large branch from his home forest. Then he would pass away his hours alone by shaping them into masterpieces.

He grinned as he saw his latest project. It had once been part of a branch from his favorite tree, one that had been knocked down in the last snow storm. He had been carefully crafting it for days, and now it was almost complete. He would have to spend the night looking for his next victim. But first he needed a nap. He replaced all of his things except for his blanket, and curled up in the place in the tree where several strong branches intersected to form a sort of nest. Then he closed his eyes and just let himself drift into a wakeful sleep.

* * *

_Three guesses who the boy in the blue and yellow hat was, and the first two don't count. In this story, Jack and Jamie are going to have a very unique relationship (no slash, sorry). Next chapter while be Jack's dream, and maybe getting recruited by the guardians (you can bet this Jack is going to put up more of a fight). Please review!  
_

_Allison: (author laughing as well) I know! The expressions on their faces will be hilarious._

_Anon: Thank you for both reviews, and I promise to try to update both stories more often. Like, say, more then once every three months._


End file.
